Ensuring the well-being and optimal development of your child’s vision is a crucial aspect of the back to school period. While clear vision is just one facet of a complex visual system, there are numerous skills necessary for efficient learning. In this blog post, we prepared a parent’s guide to look up when they suspect their child is having vision problems to be ready for back to school.
Which Steps to Take When you Assume your Child is Facing Vision Issues?
1. Acquire Knowledge About Vision Issues that Children Might Experience
Seeing clearly (or seeing 20/20 as we often hear) is only one of about 17 different vision skills that are needed for an efficient and accurate vision system. To find out more about which skills we need for efficient learning, read here.
These skills are something we learn; they develop over time through experience with our environment. But some people do not develop them properly on their own or might lose them after a concussion, brain injury, or such. Based on this information, we can understand that visual skills can be further developed if we invest time and are committed.
This is where vision therapy might come in, and it can have an important impact on your child, family, school environment, and society as a whole by:
- unleashing their learning potential,
- increasing the love of reading,
- increasing self esteem,
- improving family dynamics,
- easing on our school systems, and
- better functioning of our future work force.
2. Discover Which Behaviors May Signal That Someone is Struggling with Vision Problems in School
Pay attention to behavior such as skipping/repeating lines, reading with a finger or a ruler, having to reread lines, omitting or inserting small words when reading, short attention span with reading, poor comprehension of written text, writing uphill/downhill, difficulty copying from the board, having headaches, homework taking longer than it should, avoiding near work, light sensitivity, clumsiness, tripping, having problems with balance, not catching balls, tantrums after school. Get more information about this here, here, or in other blog on the topic you would like to research.
In school, teachers can pay attention to children who distract themselves or cause distraction out of their frustration or tiredness, often ask to go to the toilet, look around to relax their eyes etc. Find out more about how these visual issues can influence school performance.
3. Visit Eye Specialist for a Check Up
As we have already pointed out, vision is more than seeing clearly which is most often checked by routine eye exams. This is why it is important to take a closer look to other, more complex vision functions and plan vision therapy accordingly.
According to Wendy Beth Rosen, the author of The Hidden Link Between Vision and Learning, you should explore this route, especially if you have already explored everything that you possibly could have explored to get answers for your child, and you are still not getting them. If it’s not present, you will rule out something huge, but if it is present, the influence that this has on a child’s potential for success is so enormous that to leave it out will limit the effectiveness of other therapies and the child’s ability to reach their full potential.
4. Start Using AmblyoPlay – The Gamified Vision Therapy Tool Here and Now!
While traditional methods like eye patching are still used in vision therapy, video game-based vision therapy programs like AmblyoPlay offer additional advantages, including convenience and better compliance rates.
Read which issues can be treated by a regular use of AmblyoPlay or discover any other information about it.
You can begin to use AmblyoPlay without an optometrist since AmblyoPlay uses a self-learning algorithm which constantly monitors your progress and improvements and it always adapts to your particular needs. No precise medical records or results are needed for the use of AmblyoPlay, but we advise you to get a check up with a specialist anyway.
#BackToSchool Discount on AmblyoPlay Vision Therapy!
5. Follow your Child’s Developmental Needs
Follow your child’s developmental needs which they might express instinctively and try to limit the systemic pressure on them. You can help them by providing support and understanding for their situation and help them improve their mental health when facing unpleasant and stressful situations.
Conclusion
Remember that vision encompasses more than just clear sight; it involves a multitude of intricate functions that influence a child learning journey. By acquiring knowledge about potential vision problems, recognizing behavioral cues, seeking professional guidance, and considering innovative approaches like gamified vision therapy tools, you can empower your child to overcome challenges. Let the back to school period be fun!
Frequently Asked Questions
Firstly, acquire knowledge about vision issues that children and adults might experience. Secondly, discover which behavior may signal that someone is struggling with vision. Furthermore, visit an eye care specialist for a comprehensive check up. Follow your child’s developmental needs.
Pay attention to behaviours such as skipping/repeating lines, reading with a finger or a ruler, having to reread lines, omitting or inserting small words when reading, short attention span with reading, poor comprehension of written text, writing uphill/downhill, difficulty copying from the board, having headaches, homework taking longer than it should, avoiding near work, light sensitivity, clumsiness, tripping, having problems with balance, not catching balls, tantrums after school.
AmblyoPlay is a vision therapy software that kids perform by playing therapeutic games. It runs on tablets and computers and makes vision therapy engaging and fun! With exercises that adapt to each patient and their specific needs, it is an ideal solution for problems such as lazy eye, strabismus, convergence insufficiency, double vision, or other binocular problems.
Sources:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L0pljgXZ_GA&t=77s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDRfCfnZFNo&t=2s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pHvS7Mr_l8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nj2zuILCvPA&t=4s
https://www.buzzsprout.com/717243/11025401-from-the-vault-the-hidden-link-between-vision-learning